SHORT HISTORY of the 101st AIRBORNE DIVISION On August 19, 1942, the first commander, Major General William C. Lee, promised his new recruits that the 101st did not have a history, but a "Rendezvous with Destiny" As a division, the 101st has never failed that prophecy. During World War II, the 101st Airborne Division led the way on D-Day in the night drop prior to the invasion. When surrounded at Bastogne, Brig. Gen. Anthony McAuliffe answered "NUTS!" and the Screaming Eagles fought on until the siege was lifted. For their valiant efforts and heroic deeds during World War II, the 101st Airborne Division was awarded four campaign streamers and two Presidential Unit Citations. General Order nr. 5, which gave birth to the 'Eagle' division, states: In the beginning, the 101st had only one Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR) (the 502nd Parachute Infantry) and two glider regiments (the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment (GIR) and the 401st Glider Infantry Regiment), and three artillery battalions (the 377th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion (PFAB), the 321st Glider Field Artillery Battalion, and the 907th Glider Field Artillery). Additional support units were the 326th Airborne Engineer Battalion (AEB or Demolition Men), the 101st Signal Company (SC), the 326th Airborne Medical Company (AMC), and the 426th Airborne Quartermaster Company (QMC). Organizing and training the new division was a challenge. In October, 1942, the 101st began rigorous training at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Throughout the fall and winter, General Lee helped to establish a whole new tactic of warfare - the use of airborne troops in battle. In June of 1943, the 101st received a second parachute infantry regiment, the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, from Camp Toccoa (former Camp Toombs), Georgia. The 506th had trained in the shadow of Currahee Mountain and had adopted the name "Currahee" as its motto. That summer the Division proved itself during the Second Army Maneuvers and in September deployed to England. COMMANDERS of the 101st AIRBORNE DIVISION Major General William C. Lee (from August 1942 to Februari 1944) SHORT HISTORY of 502nd PARACHUTE INFANTRY REGIMENT On 1 July 1941, the 502nd Parachute Infantry Battalion was quickly activated at Fort Benning, GA under the command of Major George P Howell Jr, the former Executive Officer of the 501st Parachute Infantry Battalion. The unit was initially comprised of a small detachment taken from two companies of the 501st. On 30 January 1942 the War Department hurriedly authorized the activation of four Army parachute regiments. A month later, on 2 March 1942, the 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR) was activated at Fort Benning, GA from the 502nd Parachute Infantry Battalion. Howell was promoted to Colonel but left that same month to command the parachute school at Fort Bragg, NC. He passed the regiment's command to Col George Van Horn Moseley Jr. who came from a long line of West Point graduates. Like the other airborne regimental commanders of his day, Col Moseley made enormous demands on his troops as well as himself. In July of 1942 the activation of two full airborne divisions the 82nd and 101st was ordered and the 502nd was assigned as a permanent unit of the 101st Airborne Division. Shortly after they became part of the 101st the 502nd PIR moved from Fort Benning GA to join the rest of the division, at Fort Bragg NC. Throughout the rest of 1942 and into 1943 the 502nd PIR took part in a grueling training program, which consisted of individual, unit, and combined division training. During March of 1943 they took part in division maneuvers in Southern Pines. This was followed by the Camden maneuvers which started on May 23rd of that year. Shortly after the Camden Maneuvers the big Tennessee maneuvers were held. On September 4 1943 men of the 502nd boarded the SS. Strathnaver bound for their new home in England. The Strathnaver sailed for 6 days before she had to make port on September 11 in St. Johns Newfoundland for repairs. The journey eventually would end up taking a total of 44 days because of the discovery of salt water in the ships fresh watertanks and other non-related mishaps. On October 4th the SS John Ericsson picked the men up and finally set sail for England arriving in Liverpool on October 18th. They settled into quarters in the Chilton Foliat and Denford near Hungerford, Berkshire which would be their new home for the next seven months. The Five-O-Deuce's troopers continued their rigorous training which included 15–25 mile hikes and daily close combat exercises. Instructions were given in a wide variety of items from 1st-aid, map reading, chemical warfare and the use and firing of German weapons. Company and battalion size parachute drops where also rehearsed during this period. D-DAY Flying out of Membury and Greenham Common in the first wave to depart, the 502nd PIR headed for drop zone (DZ)A.
Their mission was to secure two northern causeways leading inland from Utah Beach and destroy a German coast-artillery
battery (122 mm Howitzer)near Ste Martin-de-Varreville. In the predawn hours of D-Day a combination of low clouds, and
enemy anti-aircraft fire caused the break-up of the troop carrier formations. The scattering of the air armada was such
that some troopers jumped while still over the English Channel and drown. Consequently, the sporadic jump patterns caused
most of Col Moseley's battalions to land far afield of their designated DZ. Some of the sticks landed as far away as 5
miles from the designated area. Unfortunately during the drop Col Moseley broke his leg and had to relinquish command
to his Executive Officer, Lt Col John H Michaelis. Meanwhile, the 3rd Battalion
led by Lt Col Robert G Cole was responsible
for securing the two causeways. Most troopers in his party were from his unit but several were from the 506th PIR and
even the 82nd Airborne. Once assembled, the force marched for the northern exits from UTAH. Along the way, they
encountered a German convoy and attacked it. 10 Germans were captured and many more killed. Upon reaching St.
Martin de Varreville, Cole sent a reconnaissance party forward to check the coastal battery. Discovering that
the position had been destroyed and deserted, Cole split his force to seize the 2 exits from UTAH. Once his troops
were in place, the dug in to wait for the 4th Infantry Division.
 A patrol was sent forward to check the other northern exits from UTAH. These had also been heavily damaged and deserted and Cassidy reinforced it. Still further south, the 1st and 2nd Battalions, 506th PIR were fighting to secure the southern exits from UTAH. Despite missing their drop zones, these units had not been as widely dispersed as the 502nd. The men of the 506th had to fight through several small villages on their way to the exits. As they approached their objectives, the exits were under attack already from the 8th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division. The paratroops joined the fight and the exits were secured. Germans began surrendering en-masse at the southern end of UTAH By late afternoon on D-Day, the 4th Division had broken free from UTAH and linked up with the 101st. That night, with the beachhead secured, the Americans dug in for the night and attempted to rally the rest of their troops. The next day, the 101st received new orders. V Corps, which had landed at OMAHA to the south has holding on to a very small beachhead and could not exit from the beach. Between UTAH and OMAHA was the town of Carentan. The 101st was ordered to break through their southern flank, seize Carentan and link up with the forces at OMAHA. Their first objective was the town of St. Come du Mont and would use 4 battalions; the 1st and 2nd Battalions, 506th PIR,
the 3rd Battalion 502st PIR and the 1st Battalion 401st GIR. The attack stepped off early in the morning of June 8. By
mid-morning, the approaches to St. Come du Mont had been cleared and defensive positions established east of the town.
3/501 had reached the Carentan highway and the enemy began withdrawing from the area. Later that evening, the force was
reinforced by the fresh 327th GIR. The next objective was to establish bridgeheads across the Douve river. At 1:00 am,
June 10, the 101st attacked and by dawn, St. Come du Mont had been encircled and cleared of enemy forces. The drive now
focused on Carentan. Here the drive was slowed considerably. Most of the brides and causeways leading to Carentan had been
destroyed. Only one causeway was completely intact. The engineers began working under heavy enemy fire to repair the others.
Several patrols were sent forward to scout the approaches to Carentan and came under heavy fire. Finally, 3/502 began to
cross the causeways in force in the face of intense enemy fire. The paratroops managed to cross to the the edges of
Carentan but could not enter the town. For two days, the 3/502 fought against massed machine gun and artillery fire to
establish a foothold on Carentan. The rest of June found the airborne troops fighting as infantry. After regrouping the 101st received the new objective
of seizing the city of Carentan. It was during this operation that Lt Col Robert Cole received the Medal of Honor for
leading his battalion in a fix bayonet charge on the Ingouf farm house, a German stronghold defending one of the bridges
over the Carentan Causeway. His Executive Officer, Maj John P Stopka, led the charge on Cole's left and received the
Distinguished Service Cross (DSC). Lt Col Cole never got the chance to wear it since he was killed by a snipers bullet
3 months later in Holland. Maj Stopka was killed two weeks after receiving his medal at Bastogne.
 MARKET GARDEN Market Garden was a risky plan by British Field Marshal Montgomery. It would be the first great daylight air
assault attempted by a military power since Germany's Fallschirmjaegers attack Crete. Similar to the Germans assault of
four years
earlier, the Allies initial plan for September 17,1944 was to use the paratroopers and glidermen of the 82nd and 101st
U.S. Airborne Divisions and England's First Airborne Division in a daring daylight drop into Holland. The airborne Allied
troops were to seize roads, bridges and the key communication cities of Eindhoven, Nijmegen and Arnhem, thus cutting
Holland in half and clearing a corridor for British armoured and motorized columns all the way to the German border.
The 101st mission was to secure the fifteen miles of Hell's Highway stretching from Eindhoven north to Veghel. After
less than three months in England, the 502nd was to make its second combat jump. Still under the command of Colonel Michaelis
the unit was to land in Holland on DZ C, seize the small highway bridge over the Dommel River north of Saint Oedenrode and
the railroad and road bridges at Best. The 502nd was also given the mission of guarding DZs B & C for the subsequent glider
landings. Shortly after 1315 hours on the afternoon of 17 September 1944, after an uneventful daylight drop, the men of
the 502nd gathered up and headed for their objectives. BATTLE OF THE BULGE On a cold December morning in 1944, the Germans launched their major offensive at dawn (16 December), west through
the Ardennes Forest,
in the lightly held sector of our VII Corps. The ultimate goal was the Antwerp Harbor where they hoped to choke off the
vital Allied supply lines. Shaef's Reserve consisted of the 101st (just back from Holland) and 82nd Airborne Divisions. The 101st was ordered
to the vitally important town of Bastogne which was vital to the German plans. From Bastogne several important
roads spun out, of high tactical value to both sides. The 101st was poured into (open) trucks for an overnight rush to Bastogne in
Belgium on Dec. 18th. Without carring for black out regulations the column rushed to the attacked region.
The defense of Bastogne by the 101st presented a formidable obstacle to the German Fifth Panzer
Army of General Hasso von Manteuffel. In the ensuing days the encircled 101st engaged in vicious fighting. The 502nd held positions
on the north and northwest portion of the envelopment. Continuing the 101st Airborne held the line along the Moder River for over 4 weeks (as part of the US 7th Army). On 23 February, the Screaming Eagles were relieved and finally returned to Mourmelon, France. Here General Ike Eisenhower spoke to the 101st Airborne Division when the complete unit was awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation for its stand at Bastogne. This was the first time in the history of the US Army that an entire (Airborne) Division was honored in such a way. As the war in Europe was nearing its end,the 502nd moved to the Ruhr Pocket on 2 April to help in mop-up operations. Here the 502nd went on the line facing the Rhine River south of Dusseldorf, Germany. On the 4th and 5th of May, the 101st Airborne Division (with the 502nd PIR) received and carried out its final wartime mission - the capture of Berchtesgaden, Hitler's Eagles Nest itself. The summer of 1945, the 502nd Regiment was on occupation duty in Austria (near Mittersill). In September, the Airborne soldiers continued waiting for transport stateside. The 101st Airborne Division returned home and was deactivated in December of 1945. More about 502nd PIR Troopers in our 502nd Trooper Research menu. Additional ources for this article and several other articles on this website:  |
